Genesis 32:17

Posted on February 1, 2006 by Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Gn 32:17 Et præcepit priori, dicens: Si obvium habueris fratrem meum Esau, et interrogaverit te, Cuius es? aut, Quo vadis? aut, Cuius sunt ista quæ sequeris?

And he instructed the first, saying: “If you meet my brother Esau, and he asks you, ‘Whose are you?’ or, ‘Where are you going?’ or, ‘Whose are these that you are following?’

# Latin Gloss Grammar Tag
1 Et and CONJ
2 præcepit he instructed 3SG.PERF.ACT.IND
3 priori to the first (one) DAT.SG.M
4 dicens saying PRES.ACT.PTCP.NOM.SG.M
5 Si if SUBORD.CONJ
6 obvium to meet ACC.SG.N (PREDICATIVE)
7 habueris you will have had/meet 2SG.FUT.PERF.ACT.IND
8 fratrem brother ACC.SG.M
9 meum my ACC.SG.M (POSS.ADJ)
10 Esau Esau PROPN.INDECL (APPOS.)
11 et and CONJ
12 interrogaverit he will have asked 3SG.FUT.PERF.ACT.IND
13 te you ACC.SG
14 Cuius whose INTERR.PRON.GEN.SG
15 es are (you) 2SG.PRES.ACT.IND (SUM)
16 aut or DISJ.CONJ
17 Quo whither? INTERR.ADV
18 vadis are you going 2SG.PRES.ACT.IND
19 aut or DISJ.CONJ
20 Cuius whose INTERR.PRON.GEN.SG
21 sunt are 3PL.PRES.ACT.IND (SUM)
22 ista those things NOM.PL.N
23 quæ which REL.PRON.ACC.PL.N
24 sequeris you follow 2SG.PRES.DEP.IND

Syntax

Main Clause: Et præcepit priori, dicens — narrative perfect with circumstantial participle introducing reported instructions.
Indirect Command (Protasis/Condition): Si obvium habueris fratrem meum Esau — future-more-vivid condition “if you meet my brother Esau.” obvium is a predicative accusative with habere (“to have [someone] in meeting” = “to meet”).
Coordinate Protasis: et interrogaverit te — second future perfect coordinated with the first: “and he asks you.”
Embedded Direct Questions: Cuius es? / Quo vadis? / Cuius sunt ista quæ sequeris? — three alternatives Esau might ask; the third includes a relative clause quæ sequeris modifying ista.
Subjects/Objects: Implied subject of main verbs = “he” (Iacob). Direct object of interrogaverit = te. In the third question, ista is subject of sunt, and quæ (ACC.PL.N) is the object of deponent sequeris.

Morphology

  1. Et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: coordinating conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: links main clauses; Translation: “and”; Notes: Common narrative connector.
  2. præcepit — Lemma: praecipio; Part of Speech: verb; Form: perfect active indicative, 3rd singular; Function: main narrative verb; Translation: “he instructed”; Notes: Perfective aspect marking completed action.
  3. priori — Lemma: prior; Part of Speech: adjective (substantive use); Form: dative singular masculine; Function: indirect object of præcepit; Translation: “to the first (one)”; Notes: Substantivized comparative referring to the first servant.
  4. dicens — Lemma: dico; Part of Speech: participle; Form: present active participle nominative singular masculine; Function: circumstantial modifier (“saying”); Translation: “saying”; Notes: Agrees with the understood subject “he.”
  5. Si — Lemma: si; Part of Speech: subordinating conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces protasis; Translation: “if”; Notes: Sets a future-more-vivid condition.
  6. obvium — Lemma: obvius; Part of Speech: adjective (predicative); Form: accusative singular neuter; Function: predicative accusative with habere; Translation: “to meet”; Notes: Idiom obvium habere = “to encounter/meet.”
  7. habueris — Lemma: habeo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active indicative, 2nd singular; Function: verb of protasis; Translation: “you will have met”; Notes: Future perfect in protasis is standard in Latin for vivid future conditions.
  8. fratrem — Lemma: frater; Part of Speech: noun; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: object within idiom; Translation: “brother”; Notes: Apposition with Esau follows.
  9. meum — Lemma: meus; Part of Speech: possessive adjective; Form: accusative singular masculine; Function: agrees with fratrem; Translation: “my”; Notes: Possessive marking kinship.
  10. Esau — Lemma: Esau; Part of Speech: proper noun; Form: indeclinable (apposition); Function: apposition to fratrem meum; Translation: “Esau”; Notes: Treated as indeclinable in Vulgate Latin.
  11. et — Lemma: et; Part of Speech: coordinating conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: links protasis elements; Translation: “and”; Notes: Continues the conditional structure.
  12. interrogaverit — Lemma: interrogo; Part of Speech: verb; Form: future perfect active indicative, 3rd singular; Function: verb of coordinated protasis; Translation: “he will have asked”; Notes: Parallel with habueris in tense/aspect.
  13. te — Lemma: tu; Part of Speech: personal pronoun; Form: accusative singular; Function: direct object of interrogaverit; Translation: “you”; Notes: Emphatic placement after the verb.
  14. Cuius — Lemma: cuius; Part of Speech: interrogative pronoun; Form: genitive singular; Function: possessive in direct question; Translation: “whose”; Notes: Governs implied possession of the person.
  15. es — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative, 2nd singular; Function: copula in direct question; Translation: “are (you)”; Notes: Subject “tu” understood.
  16. aut — Lemma: aut; Part of Speech: disjunctive conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces alternative question; Translation: “or”; Notes: Strong disjunction.
  17. Quo — Lemma: quo; Part of Speech: interrogative adverb; Form: invariable; Function: asks destination; Translation: “whither?”; Notes: Adverb of motion toward.
  18. vadis — Lemma: vado; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative, 2nd singular; Function: predicate of direct question; Translation: “are you going”; Notes: Common verb of motion.
  19. aut — Lemma: aut; Part of Speech: disjunctive conjunction; Form: invariable; Function: introduces third alternative; Translation: “or”; Notes: Marks final option.
  20. Cuius — Lemma: cuius; Part of Speech: interrogative pronoun; Form: genitive singular; Function: possessive in direct question; Translation: “whose”; Notes: Governs possession of ista.
  21. sunt — Lemma: sum; Part of Speech: verb; Form: present active indicative, 3rd plural; Function: copula with plural subject; Translation: “are”; Notes: Agrees with ista.
  22. ista — Lemma: iste; Part of Speech: demonstrative pronoun; Form: nominative plural neuter; Function: subject of sunt; Translation: “those things”; Notes: Deictic reference to the herds/gifts.
  23. quæ — Lemma: qui, quae, quod; Part of Speech: relative pronoun; Form: accusative plural neuter; Function: object of sequeris in relative clause; Translation: “which”; Notes: Relates back to ista.
  24. sequeris — Lemma: sequor; Part of Speech: deponent verb; Form: present indicative, 2nd singular; Function: predicate of relative clause; Translation: “you follow”; Notes: Deponent in form, active in meaning; governs accusative quæ.

 

About Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

Born around 346 A.D. in Stridon, St. Jerome was a scholar fluent in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew whose ascetic discipline and deep engagement with Scripture prepared him for a monumental task: translating the Bible into Latin. Commissioned by Pope Damasus I around 382 A.D., Jerome began by revising the flawed Old Latin Gospels, then expanded his work to the entire Bible. For the New Testament, he corrected Latin texts using Greek manuscripts; for the Old Testament, he translated most books directly from Hebrew—a controversial but principled choice. His final Psalter, however, followed the Greek Septuagint tradition for liturgical use. This composite translation, later known as the Vulgate (editio vulgata), became the authoritative biblical text of the Western Church, formally endorsed at the Council of Trent in 1546. The Vulgate’s influence extends beyond theology into textual criticism and Latin education. As one of the earliest translations grounded in original-language scholarship, it offers a vital witness to the state of biblical texts in late antiquity. Jerome’s lexical and syntactic decisions are studied to trace manuscript history and assess variant readings. Its elegant Latin, consistent in grammar and rich in vocabulary, became a model for medieval and Renaissance learning, bridging classical and ecclesiastical Latin. More than a translation, the Vulgate helped define Christian doctrine, preserved the Latin language, and laid essential groundwork for the critical study of Scripture—remaining indispensable to students of Latin, theology, and textual history.
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